Chapter Three The Self The True Self o The idea that one s true self exists deep down and that one can find it Ex I do bad things but I am a good person deep down o More common in the West rather than the East Independent self concept vs Interdependent self concept o More common in recently Ability to change status profession where one lives etc People s ability to change who they are can change more easily now o People define themselves in different ways in different contexts What your dating profile would say about you versus what your job Dating profile vs Job Application application says about you Family vs Friends The way you act around family versus the way you act around friends o Self Concept is formed by getting information about the self from Introspection attending to one s own thoughts and feelings Privileged access we know things about ourselves that no one else does Can be inaccurate o Ex Car and attractive model study Men would pick the car where the model was o Ex Choosing Socks Study They would choose the last pair they were presented with Three Main Parts Self Concept the way others view you or what others say about Feedback from Others you Can change people s self concept People don t always provide accurate feedback Looking Glass Self o Ex Out of politeness People aren t always accepting of negative feedback from others Social Comparison Comparing yourself to others Using other s behaviors as a basis for judging oneself o Ex Performance Upward o Comparing yourself to someone who is better than you o Can increase motivation but might not feel good Ex Comparing yourself to someone who has a 4 0 GPA Downward o Comparing yourself to someone who is worse off than you o Can reduce motivation but feels good Self Perception Ex Someone in jail what we think about ourselves Gaining self knowledge by observing one s own behavior o Boring task experiment Subjects that were paid 1 reported liking the task more than those that were paid 20 Vicarious self perception gaining self knowledge by observing the behavior of close others o People have a merged identity with close others Other s niceness makes YOU nice etc Basking in Reflected Glory BIRGing those who make us look good by association drawing closer to 2 If Florida State wins everyone wears FSU garb to proudly represent or bask in the moment distancing self Cutting Off Reflected Failure CORFing from those who make us look bad by association If Florida State loses no one wears FSU garb because you DON T want to be associated with losing team Motives Related to Self Concept desire for accurate information o Appraisal o Consistency desire to get feedback that conforms to one s self concept Motivated to seek information that confirms how we feel about ourselves Not entirely accurate Ex Thinking you re bad at math but getting the highest score in class on a test o Self Enhancement desire to establish and maintain a positive view of the self Public Self o Focus on self presentation Impression Management Reputation Role Executive Self o Making Decisions o Exercising self control 3 o Can differ form self concept quite a bit o Changing the public self can change one s self concept and behavior o High self monitors change their self presentation in response to situational demands more than low self monitors Self Esteem o A person s overall feeling of self worth o Sociometer Theory or capacity to belong o The Self Esteem Movement self esteem acts as a rough gauge of perceived belongingness The self esteem movement is a method of nurturing and teaching that promotes pointing out the positive things a child does to bolster his self confidence and spur him toward their goals BUT Does high self esteem lead to success of does success lead to high self esteem Positive Side of High Self Esteem o Associated with persistence in the face of failure People easily accept feedback that is consistent with self concept High Self Esteem fear of NOT SUCEEDING Low Self Esteem fear of FAILURE o High self esteem is associated with coping with failure Relying on self complexity to buffer against failure in one area o Low self esteem is associated with self handicapping Fear of failure preparation for failure failure on one s own terms Negative Side of High Self Esteem o Not all it is cracked up to be Often unrelated to ratings of the self from others Self deception causing high self esteem Does NOT lead to academic or job success Does NOT prevent people from drug and alcohol o Threatened Egotism result EX Domestic Violence 4 When people high in self esteem s greatness is questioned hostility can Possible Selves o Ideal Self who you WANT to be Can act as a gauge o Ought Self who you think OTHERS want you to be Who what your parents want you to be Burden of Selfhood o It can be burdensome to o Escaping the Self Work toward self improvement Engage in impression management Try to find oneself Make lots of decisions Etc Drugs Binge Eating Masochism both sexual self harm Cults Suicide 5
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